Playing the Player

This episode will explore the experience of a female college athlete whose sport, lacrosse, has changing rules and regulations which contribute to the portrayal of masculinity and femininity in the sport of lacrosse.

Lacrosse became most popular to begin in Canada, as a “Gentleman's game,” and the participation of it meant a  representation of ‘noble savage’ as a means to boost Canadian masculinity.  It allowed for men to show their athleticism in a competition setting that varied from the popular winter activity of hockey. However, the sport has grown and both women and mens collegiate teams have taken over college athletics across the US.

While lacrosse has mens and women's teams, the rules are very different. For instance, mens lacrosse allows for checking and physical contact whereas in womens, any kind of body checks or stick checks that hit the player will result in a penalty. Because of checking, there is an increase in the likelihood of injury and therefore, they are required to wear protective gear such as helmets, gloves, chest, elbow, and shoulder pads. Whereas, in womens they only wear goggles and mouth guards and the most protected player is the goalie.

Throughout this episode, collegiate athlete, Annie Wilson, will help to dive into the differences between the two sports to better understand how these rules and aspects of the game contribute to the outside perspective.

In this episode, we dive into the world of broadcasting, how mindset plays a large role in overcoming the outside voices of the public, and  the journey of a young female broadcaster.

We are joined in this episode by Tara Lynch. Tara knew she wanted to be a broadcaster since the age of 10 and grew up following her dream of broadcasting in Connecticut. She got involved in any way she could whether it was through volunteering or internships. She continued her journey to broadcasting when attending Ithaca College’s Roy Park School of Communications, where she both broadcasted and produced for their Ithaca College Television network. During the uncertain times of the pandemic, Tara created her own Instagram TV show to work on her broadcasting skills and also provide infotainment to friends and family. She is now a Multimedia Journalist with WETM in Elmira, N.Y. I am pleased to welcome Tara…

This episode, we are joined by Katherine Eyre, a 1978 St. Lawrence Alum, who helped begin the women's ice hockey team in the fall of 1974. Not only was it an uphill battle to form a club team, but even to be able to step onto the arena ice. She will help us better understand the first hand perspective of an athlete following Title IX. She will also be able to offer some insight on how female athletics still might need more support following Title IX. 

Katherine builds upon jennifer's discussions of fighting for what you want and essentially they are two key examples of women who have paved the way for sports. Lawrence. Not only did she fight for her self but for the other eager female hockey players to come who were given the Title IX promise of equality in sport.

This episode will explore Jennifer Dupres experience being involved in women's athletics prior to 1974 and following Title IX, in order to understand the first hand perspective of an athlete before and after Title IX. This is important to study in order to see how female athletics changed on the competitive level  before and after Title IX.

Jennifer Dupre, St. Lawrence university graduate of 1984, discusses her experience playing athletics on the high school and college level following the implementation of Title IX. Her experience growing up surrounded by sports such as baseball, softball, and field hockey helped us to explore the differences in the ability for female athletics to begin at St. Lawrence and what the recruiting process looked like. She also compares the differences between some women's sports that were more easily implemented than others such as field hockey and soccer. Stay tuned to hear from Jennifer as she gives us inside information on women's athletics during a time of change and emerging female athleticism.

Hannah invites two of her house mates (Kristen and Beth) to come on and answer some trivia questions about the sports world, share their embarrassing athletic stories, and tell the truth about the "athlete" label. Labels become a large part of the podcast as the girls unexpectedly dive into the topic of how their college experiences have been shaped to conform to a pandemic world. Part of that being an environment where people are encouraged to snitch on one another, strain on mental health, and the problematic action of labeling students based on an organization. 

Make sure to tune in for a fun episode that turns serious and gives the perspective of students in college right now.

On this weeks episode Hannah starts off the podcast by sharing her story of sports, hip injuries, playing in high school, and deciding to step away in college. Being a multi sport athlete and having to alter the way you play the game because of an injury can definitely change your perspective of sports and steer you to a path of behind the scenes work. Then Hannah and Travis Ecke dive into the world of college football. They cover conferences, positions, field regulations, and being an athlete at a D1 school. They also highlight key players in each position to help give faces to the names and give an inside scoop of some of their hardworking and dedicated friends who have been killing it at the higher level! 

Most importantly, Travis highlights the "Dominate the Day Foundation" which was created in honor of Jordan Sebastian to carry out his legacy by continuing what he was passionate about--coaching, mentoring and teaching kids. Make sure to check out their website in the link below...

http://www.dominatethedayfoundation.org/publications-about-dtd-166577.html

On this weeks episode, Hannah is joined by Danielle Landry, wife to the Tennessee Titans outside linebacker, Harold Landry. Danielle talks about her and Harold's "Nicholas Sparks summer" that began their relationship and their journey of raising two beautiful sons, Grayson and Ollie. They discuss the reality of what life is like in the NFL and how it differs from what most people expect (not throwing wine bottles at other wives). Enjoy!

Meet your host, Hannah Gailey! Hannah has always had sports involved in her life and sees the need for education about sports, athletes, traditions, and more. Throughout this short first episode, learn about what you should expect from upcoming episodes of Playing the Player and get a sneak peak of next weeks episode. Thanks for tuning in and get pumped to learn the ins and outs of the sports world!